Reliance on corporate PACs comes as Collins maintains ranking as “second-most unpopular Senator in the country”

 

New analysis of her latest FEC filing shows Senator Susan Collins has collected more than $1.1 million in corporate PAC contributions this cycle -- more than four times as much as she’s reported raised from Mainers -- and the latest sign of how far Collins has drifted from the Mainers she’s supposed to represent.

 

When Senator Collins first ran for Senate more than 20 years ago, she said she would work to limit the amount PACs could contribute to candidates. Once elected, Collins specifically fought to remove a provision to ban PAC donations and now her campaign relies on those checks. While she’s raised $1.1 million in corporate PAC dollars for the 2020 cycle, she has raised $5.3 million from corporate PACs since she’s been in office. 

 

“One million dollars from corporate PACs more than a year out from the election -- that tells you everything you need to know about why Senator Collins is voting with big corporations and not Mainers,” said Maine Democratic Party Chair Kathleen Marra. “Instead of fighting for our state she now answers to the special interests whose only concern is their bottom line.”

 

As Senator Collins’ reliance on corporate PAC money has grown, her support among Maine voters continues to dwindle. New polling from Morning Consult shows Collins’ approval has fallen two more points, and after seeing the “biggest decline of anyone in the Senate” in their last survey this summer, Collins remains the second-most unpopular Senator in the country.

 

Here’s why Senator Collins is leaning on corporate PACs more than ever to prop up her re-election bid:

 

  • WBUR: Controversial Votes Threaten Susan Collins' Centrist Reputation

 

  • Bangor Daily News: Unions that have backed Susan Collins are undecided for 2020. Brett Kavanaugh is one reason.

 

  • HuffPost: Susan Collins Voted To Confirm Kavanaugh A Year Ago. Mainers Haven’t Forgotten.

 

  • Portland Press-Herald: “only about 5 percent of Collins’ recent haul comes from Maine donors and 95 percent came from out of state”

 

  • Bloomberg: Susan Collins Faces Re-Election as Standing Erodes in Trump Era
     
  • The Hill: Cook Political Report moves Susan Collins Senate race to 'toss up'

 

  • FiveThirtyEight: Mitch McConnell Is The Only Senator More Unpopular Than Susan Collins 

 

  • Morning Consult: “Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) saw a 16-point drop in her net approval, the biggest decline of anyone in the Senate.”
 

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